Chester Himes (1909–1984)

A much-needed change of pace for me, and a book which (unusually for me) I finished in a day. Himes wrote the novel while in Paris, escaping from his bitter experience of racism in '50s Hollywood. He was asked to write a crime novel for the French market, and choose Harlem as his setting, despite never having lived there, as he felt it would be most recognisable to his audience as a tough African-American neighbourhood.

Judging by the book's longevity in print, Himes did his job well, and I show more certainly enjoyed immersing myself into his milieu of petty criminals, con artists, casual murderers, crooked cops and tough detectives. Himes's darkly humorous tone is just right, and he delivered a couple of shock twists that had my jaw dropping.

I'm definitely up for exploring the other books in the series. A solid 4/5🌟 show less

A tough story? Sure. Packed with callous characters acting brutally most of the time? Certainly. Still, I never found the story to be really disturbing, maybe because there's such a perfect balance between the brutality of the life in the black ghetto and the dark humour people still live with, together with a sort of strong positivity coming from Jackson, the naïve main character. It's a perfect balance, hard to achieve.

The plot may be a bit unlikely, as some reviewers pointed out, but show more Jackson's naivety is also uncommon. Again, the balance between this uncommon quality and the incredible string of events happening in such short time, turns the plot into something surreal, and that's why it worked for me. After all, isn't Mr Clay, Jackson's employer, who talks to him turning his back, napping on the couch - clearly a surreal character?

Grave Digger and Coffin Ed do shine from the first moment they appear on the page. I wouldn't be able to say what they have that all the other characters don't (and you'll find a number of noticeable characters in here), but they do have that `something'. Many of the characters have a strong personality, still Coffin Ed and especially Grave Digger - who appears longer in the story - have something more. Maybe it's that mix of recklessness and morality that it's hard to find with this depth and this complexity. I understand why Himes then shifted his attention to them.

The plot is enjoyable on the whole, but there are episodes that really grab a reader. What to say of Coffin Ed unwittingly knocking out Grave Digger while being blinded by acid, desperately calling for him, fearing he's being killed? Or Billie offering money to Grave Digger if he leaves Coffin Ed's attackers alone, so not to ruin her business... which Grave Digger never takes as an option?
But my absolute favourit is the episode of the approaching train, a long, emotional episode: the train approaches the station and shakes everything on its way, tracks, houses, the very air, all the characters. It also shakes the story in a way that I hadn't expected. Powerful. show less

Himes’ first novel shows that his talents as a writer were intact early. The prose swings hard and direct, the poignancy intensified by the first-person narration. A reader feels the anger, remorse, doubt, and defiance of the protagonist as he maneuvers around and through the mire of classism, colorism, and the ubiquitous racism of WWII-era Los Angeles. The potential for violence hangs over almost every encounter, like a choking smoke. Himes’ early novels didn’t get the respect they show more deserve, but in the wild action of the last pages here, you can almost see his hardboiled Harlem novels coming a decade later. show less

THE TALENTED MR RIPLEY | read 2022-08

Highsmith achieves a singular tone: Ripley is entitled, contradictory, isolated, and seemingly traumatised from prior social relationships. His sociopathy manifests in a predominant concern for appearances, but not only to fool others -- he displays a consistent preoccupation with personal appearance as a measure of self-worth, in terms of projecting what he wants to be in the world, and how he wants others to value him. In fact, by the end it appears he show more is an empty shell of a person: no identity, nothing to define him as a person, ever at the whim of events and emotions.

Interestingly, Ripley is neither a sympathetic criminal mastermind nor a figure of fear a la Hannibal Lecter. His plans often do not work, and he is suspected almost from the start with multiple suspicions raised: boat at San Reno, forged signatures, Marge, friends of Dickie. He is both pathetic and pitiful, if not pitiable. Undecided about following along for more adventures at this point, perhaps if the "identity" or "authenticity" theme nags at me.

It's my idea the reader is meant to consider the possibility Ripley is gay, and reflect upon what implications flow from the supposition. I don't think Highsmith has a definitive answer, let alone one the reader is meant to figure out, rather the reader is supposed to consider it. Many suggestions woven into the story: Ripley wanting to get Dickie alone, to have him "like" him, observations on whether Ripley finds various men attractive, only commenting on women if they are linked to one of the men he's dealing with. But much less on direct consequences, either of plot or of character. So the question is left dangling: what would it mean if he were?

A re-read, first read in high school and possibly a bit earlier.

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to read:
THE KILLER INSIDE ME | J Thompson
DOWN THERE (SHOOT THE PIANO PLAYER) | D Goodis
PICK-UP | C Wileford
THE REAL COOL KILLERS | C Himes show less